A New Q&A with Author and WLT Instructor Shennandoah Diaz

Shennandoah Diaz, a marketing and publishing professional and a writer, is starting the year off right at the Writers’ League of Texas with her class, “Social Media Demystified.” The class is Saturday, January 22, 2011 from 9 a.m. – Noon. Check out more details about the class on the website.

But first, learn a little more about Shennandoah here with her Q&A!

What book are you reading right now?

I’m a double fisted reader so they are Johannes Cabal The Necromancer by Jonathan Howard and Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke.

When you’re not reading or writing, what do you like to do with your time?

Talk, or so I’m told.

What’s your favorite opening line of a book?

I can’t say what it was because this is a mixed audience but the book was Outrageous Fortune by Tim Scott, so you can look it up. (it’s a bad word—I’m a naughty girl!)

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Publishing Options: Which One to Choose?

Guest Post by Shennandoah Diaz

It’s great–writers finally have options when it comes to getting their book published. No longer do you have to wait months, even years to be discovered. With a click of a button you could send your book out into the world, but is that such a good thing? Yes, there are options, but not all of them are good and not all will yield the results you desire. There isn’t one perfect publishing option either. All of them come with benefits and pitfalls; the trick is weighing the options carefully against your goals as a writer and finding the one that best fits your needs.

To help you with that decision, here is a quick introduction to the options available — but I also urge you to do your diligent duty and research each one thoroughly before signing on the dotted line.

Traditional Publishing

The first option, and the one most familiar to writers, is traditional publishing. Under this model, the author first secures an agent, who then tries to find a home for the author’s book at one of the major houses commonly referred to as the “Big Six.”